Diamonds have always fascinated humans across the world. They carry with them the brilliance of light and clarity, but also have a dark underside that most people do not know about. As with any form of wealth, diamonds carry with them the danger of being stolen. And indeed some of the most famous ones have a long and bloody history. Sounds thrilling, doesn’t it? We present below the world’s five most famous diamonds and a bit of their story and current locations, should you choose to visit any of them. Enjoy!

5Koh-I-Noor : Mountain of LightCarats: 105.60 :: Origin: India

Koh-I-Noor is Persian for “The Mountain of Light”. It has a history that goes back as far as 1304. The kings of then Malwa in India had captured the diamond in the sixteenth century from Babar, the famous Mughal Sultan. It later remained in the possession of Mughal emperors and is believed to have been set in the famous Peacock Throne that was prepared for Shah Jehan, who made the Taj Mahal. After the break-up of the Persian Empire, this diamond reached India again, from where it originally was mined by the Golconda Empire. It is thought to have travelled to Afghanistan as well, with a bodyguard of Nadir Shah, who escaped with the stone when Shah was murdered. Later on, he offered it to Ranjit Singh of Punjab to request military help. Later in history, the diamond was snatched by the East India Company as a partial indemnity during the battles between the British and the Sikhs. Queen Victoria was presented the diamond in 1850. The stone was originally said to weigh nearly 1,986 carats in its original size, when taken from India. However, it was then recut to about 108.93 carats, upon which the Queen first wore it in a brooch. Later, it was set in the State Crown, which wasworn by Queen Alexandra, Queen Mary, and in 1937 was worn by Queen Elizabeth for her coronation. At the moment, the diamond can be seen in the Tower of London, sitting along with other Crown Jewels.

Alexander Pope wrote about the Regent diamond in his famous work “Moral Essays” as follows:

“Asleep and naked as an Indian lay
An honest factor stole a gem away;
He pledged it to the Knight, the Knight had wit,
So kept the diamond, and the rogue was bit.”

In 1698 in India, Thomas Pitt, the Governor of Madras is said to have acquired it by killing a slave who had originally found the diamond. It was then sent to England for cutting. The diamond was sold in 1717 to the French, who first fixed it on the band of Louis XV’s silver gilt crown in 1722 for his coronation. Then it was placed in Louis XVI’s crown in 1775. From there, the diamond was moved to the hilt of the First Consul’s sword in 1801, and then in 1812 onto his two-edged sword. In 1825, Charles X wore it on the crown of his coronation. Currently, the Regent is placed at the Louvre museum in Paris, where it can be visited.

The Centenary diamond was discovered in the Premier Mine in South Africa in July of 1986. It was found using an X-Ray system. Originally believed to have weighed about 599.10 carats, Master cutter Gabi Tolkowsky and his select team took nearly three years to make it the largest, most modern-cut, and excellent-colour diamond that there is. It is known to have 247 facets with 164 of them being on the stone and 83 over its girdle. It was loaned in May 1991 to the British for display at the Tower of London. It is rumoured to have been sold in 2008 to an anonymous business owner in the United states by DeBeers. Further details are not known at this point.

2The Orloff – Plucked out from Vishnu’s eye

Carats: 300 :: Origin: India

This beautiful diamond was originally found in India. It is bluish green in appearance and very pure in terms of clarity. It is a Mughal-cut rose shaped diamond. It is believed that the Orloff was first set as the eye of a Hindu god Vishnu’s idol, located in the innermost sanctuary of a temple in Srirangam. However, a Frenchman stole it in the 1700s and took it to Madras where he sold it for 2,000 pounds to an English sea-captain. As time passed on and the diamond changed hands, it arrived at Amsterdam where the Russian Count, Grigori Orloff was residing. He was once the lover of Empress Catherine the Great. It is said that he purchased the stone for 90,000 pounds as a gift for Catherine. Ever since, the stone has been named the Orloff. Catherine then mounted the stone in the Imperial Sceptre. After Orloff’s death, the diamond was hidden in a priest’s tomb by the Russians in 1812 when they feared that Napolean would enter Moscow. It is rumoured that Napoleon found the Orloff and was just about to claim it, when the priest’s ghost appeared and cursed his army. This made Napoleon turn away without the Orloff. If you want to visit this stone with all its history, you have to travel to Moscow, where it is currently placed in the Diamond Treasury of Russia.

1The Great Star of Africa – Largest diamond in the worldCarats: 530.20 :: Origin: South Africa

Also known as the Cullinan I and Star Africa, this is the largest cut diamond on the planet. It is pear shaped and has 74 facets. It was actually cut from the largest diamond crystal that was ever found – the 3,106.75 carats Cullinan crystal. It was discovered in Transvaal, South Africa in 1905 during an inspection tour of the Premier Mine. It took six months of examination to understand how it had to be divided. Eventually, it yielded about nine major and 96 smaller brilliant cut stones. It is set in the Royal Sceptre that is currently placed with the other Crown Jewels in the Tower of London, where it can be visited.

It takes nature a long time to form a pearl,and humans a little longer to culture the pearl and turn it into the object of art that we all like and appreciate. Did you know however, that this love for pearls can be worth several million dollars? If you don’t believe us, take a look at the top 5 famous pearls of the world below:

5 Double Strand Necklace || Valued at $3.7 Million

A pearl necklace is already an object of exquisite art. How about a double strand necklace, then? Double the beauty, double the joy. This beautiful and expertly stranded 120 pearl necklace was sold in an auction held in 2012 at Christie’s. The amount shelled out by the buyer, was $3.7 million! The pearls used in it are of varying sizes, ranging from 6.50mm to 12.25mm in diameter. Not only the size, but the variegation varies from white to a rare light cream. These pearls were then stranded together to be clasped by a three carat diamond signed by Cartier. A true example of luxury lying in simplicity!

4 The Big Pink Pearl || Valued at $4.7 Million

Though we love pearls to be perfectly round, cultured and so on, there is something about an imperfect shape that nature decides to give. This pearl, now widely known as “the big Pink Pearl” is an example of such beauty in asymmetry. This abalone pearl that was found in 1990 by diver Wesley Rankin weighs 470 carats and has an iridescent pink color, earning its name. The nacre or mother of pearl, has multiple hues such as orange, silver, pink, green, blue and lavender. Rankin owns “Pacific Coast Pearls” in California. The value for this pearl in 1991 was $4.7 Million. You can only imagine where it stands now!

3 The Baroda Pearl Necklace || Valued at $7.1 Million

Kings know how to live in style and they know that style itself, never goes out of style. If you thought a two strand necklace is luxury enough, how about a seven strand necklace now? “SaathLahda” in Hindi is a term used to denote a seven strand necklace most commonly worn by royalty. The SaathLahda owned by the Maharaja of Baroda has 68 pearls painstakingly chosen for being the best. Not only are they varying in diameter from 10mm to 16mm, but each pearl matches the other on the opposite string in size, shape and colour. The seven strands were later reconstituted by experts to make a two strand necklace. The strands are joined by a cushion-cut diamond signed by Cartier. It was sold by Christie’s for a whopping $7.1 Million in 2007 to an anonymous buyer.

2 LaPeregrina Pearl || Valued at $11.8 Million

The beautiful La Pelegrina weighs 56 carats and is fully pear shaped, which is a rare occurrence. There are intriguing stories and historical events that lie behind it. As it happened in the mid-16th century, this beautiful pear shaped pearl was found by an African slave on the coast of a Spanish colony called Santa Margarita. At that time, King Philip the second gifted the pearl to Mary the first, for his proposal. After she passed away, the pearl was duly returned to the Crown of Spain. A hundred years later, the Battle of Vitoria occurred and the French were defeated. Napoleon’s brother, Joseph Bonaparte, was under obligation to leave the Spanish kingdom. As he left, he took some crown jewels with him, which included the La Peregrina Pearl. As time went on, Napoleon the third sold La Peregrina to James Hamilton who was the Duke of Abercorn. This happened in 1870. In 1969, the pearl was bought for $37,000 at Sotheby’s by the famous actor Richard Burton as a gift for his wife, Elizabeth Taylor. Many years later in 2011, it was sold by Christie’s for $11.8 Million. The necklace for the pearl has equally spaced floral patterns with a ruby centrepiece embellishment. A sheer beauty, isn’t it?

1 Beauty of Ocean Pearl || Valued at $139 Million

You have certainly heard of the great wall of China, but how about the great Ball of China? Confused? Well, prepare to be surprised instead. The Beauty of Ocean pearl is the world’s biggest and heaviest pearl. Needless to say, it is also the world’s most expensive pearl. It weighs six tons and stands five feet tall. The wonderful thing about this pearl is that it can glow in the dark. Imagine a huge green ball of light in the night! If you think that would be a good addition to your bedroom, be prepared to shell $139 Million! The green glow is due to the fact that the pearl is composed mostly of fluorite and was ground from it’s raw shape into the current shape over a painstaking period of three years. No amount of staring at this great example of natural and man made art can fill your eyes. This is a true Beauty of Ocean indeed!